Toilet accessory



Sept. 10, 1940. P. s. HAUTON 2,214,329

TOILET ACCESSORY Filed March 16, 1939 INVENTOR PAUL S. HAUTON ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 10, 1940 FEC 8 Claims.

This invention relates to toilet accessories and has more particular reference to a unitary assembly of an operating member and a protective casing or sheath for such operating member.

=* More generally stated the invention comprises a unitary arrangement of an operating member and a protective sheath or casing shielding the operating member when the parts of the assembly are in closed position and affording a convenient hand hold for manipulating the operating member when the assembly is in open position and the operating member is in use.

An object of the invention is to provide a simplified assembly of the character described which can be easily molded from a plastic.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a hinge construction uniting the operating member with the protective sheath member of the accessory in such a manner that by a snap action the operating member is latched in an open position with respect to the sheath.

Another object is the provision of a simplified construction for a toilet accessory composed of two elements, seamed together in such a manner that one aiiords a rigid support for the other,

when in operating position.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a simplified toilet accessory of the type contemplated which may be economically produced and conveniently manipulated, and which afiords a sanitary arrangement for the operating member.

In the accompanying drawing, the present invention is illustrated as embodied in a foldable 35 sheathed comb. It is to be understood that this embodiment is given by way of illustration only, to aid those skilled in the art to comprehend and practice the principles of the present invention, and is not intended in any .way to restrict the 40 invention or to limit the scope thereof.

In said drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the invention in folded or closed position, partly fragmentary and partly in section;

Fig. 2 is a section of Fig. 1 0n the line 2-2;

Fig. 3 is a section of Fig. 1 on the line 33;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation in open position partly in section and partly fragmentary;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section of a modified form so of the invention; and

Fig. 6 is a section of Fig. 5 on the line Ei5.

Continuing now by way of a more detailed description, the operating member I comprises the conventional teeth 2 and a large grip flange cap 3 disposed along one edge thereof. The grip flange cap 3 is preferably somewhat longer and wider than the operating portion so that its outer edges overlie the sheath edges to form a smooth exterior for the assembly, while at the same time affording an easily gripped portion. For the sake of convenience, a finger grip 4 may be formed upon the flange cap 3.

Asheath 5, U-shaped in cross section, has one enld closed and the other terminating in a projecting lug or ear 6, semi-circular in configuration, and disposed slightly above the horizontal center of the sheath. The operating member I has an ear "4' which is shaped similar to the ear 6, and since the operating member I is incased within the sheath 5, the ears overlap and coincide with respect to their external portion. The cars 6 and l function as parts of the hinge construction joining the operating member with the sheath 5, the center of the ears locating the pivotal point about which the sheath 5 and the operating member I swing. Any suitable means such as a pin 8, extending tranversely and fitting flush with the outer surfaces of the sheath 5, may be used as a pivot for the hinge elements.

To impart flexibility or mobility to the hinge formed by the ears 6 and I, the ear l is provided with an annular slot 25, concentric with the pin 8 and extending substantially the full circumfer' ence of the circular segment 26 formed by the boundaries of said slot. This arrangement provides the ear 'I with an outer rim section 9 having an inner central segment 26 substantially cut out and merely supported on one side by a comparatively small sector or neck portion 21. The accessory is made of materials which are inherently elastic enough to permit flexing of neck El when pressure is applied to pivot pin 8 in the right direction and thereby cause movement of pivot pin 8 in relation to outer rim 9. The amount of this movement is limited by the width of slot 25. By virtue of this construction I have provided what may be characterized as a hinge construction with a floating pivot. The purpose of this arrangement will be now more fully explained.

For locking the operating member I in an open position, I provide a bead Iii located exteriorly on rim of the ear I and positioned adjacent the heel I I of the grip flange cap 3. Cooperating with the bead I6 is a transverse groove I2, internally formed-on the heel I3 of the sheath 5. When the operating member I is moved to fully opened position, the groove I2 constitutes a keeper for the bead Ill, thus holding the operating member latched in an open position. To permit the bead II] to enter the groove l2, the hinged construction described above is caused to function. That is to say, as the heel 83 of sheath 5 comes in contact with bead it there is a radial pull exerted on pivot 8 on account of its location in ears 6 as well as segment 26. This pull causes neck 27 to flex and permit pivot 8 to shift in the direction of the pull and thereby causes heel I3 to ride over bead I0 and locate it in keeper l2, which is formed in the heel. As soon as the bead l0 registers with keeper l2 the pull on pivot 8 and segment 25 is relieved and neck 27 straightens out and returns pivot 8 to its original position. To facilitate the movement of segment 26 it is made slightly thinner than outer rim 9.

As mentioned above, segment 2% is connected with ears 6 of sheath 5 through pivot pin 8 and therefore carries sheath 5 along in its move ment and thereby provides a floating pivot between operating member 8 and sheath 5. This novel locking arrangement is an important feature of my invention.

It will be appreciated that by adjusting such variables as the height of the bead H), or the width of the neck 2?, the amount of tension re quired to engage and disengage the bead ill with its keeper or groove l2, may be correspondingly varied, so that the positiveness of the locking feature may be adjusted to the degree best suited in practicing the invention. It is therefore obvious that the construction embodying my floating locking mechanism lends itself admirably to various requirements of toilet accessories of the character herein contemplated.

When the operating member l is opened to its full extent, the heel if thereof abuts against the heel l3 of the sheath 5 and in this manner furthen relative movement of the component parts is limited and the sheath 5 serves as a handle for the operating member i.

To retain the operating member in a closed or sheathed position, there is provided a wedgeshaped projection 2'3, located interiorly of the end of the sheath 5. It is conventional to provide a coarse tooth 2i on the end of the comb, and this tooth has an indent reversely conforming with and adapted to accommodate the projection 2%; By this arrangement, the projection Ell may be brought into engagement with the indent 22, with a snap action because of inherent resiliency of the material comprising the accessory.

A modification of the hinge construction and the latching arrangement is shown in Figs. 5 and 6. This design utilizes friction only for holding members I and 5 in open or closed position. The construction comprises a disk shaped spring iriction washer l5 seated in a suitable recess 55 formed in the operating member I. An eyelet El passing through aligned openings in the sheath 5, washer l5, and operating member l, pivotally secure these parts together, and constitute a hinge at one end of the accessory.

What I claim is:

l. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a part foldable thereon, one of said parts having an extension which is flexible in the plane of fold of the parts and which is pivotally connected to the other of said parts, and detent elements, one on each of said foldable parts and in position thereon to contact as the device is opened, for holding the device in open position, one of said detent elements presenting a cam surface to the other and one of them being connected to said flexible extension, whereby upon contact of said detent elements the flexible extension will bend to permit one of said detent elements to ride over and behind the other.

2. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a part foldable thereon, one of said parts having an extension which is flexible in the plane of fold of the parts and which is directly pivoted to the other of said parts, and detent elements, one on each of said fcldable parts and in position thereon to contact as the device is opened, for holding the device in open position, one of said detent elements presenting a cam surface to the other and one of them being conn cted to said flexible extension, whereby upon contact of said detent elements the flexible extension will yield to permit said part directly pivoted thereto to be lifted by said cam surface and the detent element on such lifted part to be passed over the detent element on the other part.

3. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a part foldable thereon, one of said parts having an ear at the end thereof set against a side wall of the other part tohold the parts in a common plane, a pivot pin passed through said ear and wall pivotally to connect the parts, the ear having a slot therethrough which forms of the ear an outer or peripheral, rigid section and an inner flexible and resilient section through which passes the pivot pin, detent elements, one on each of said foldable parts and in position thereon to contact as the device is opened, one of said detent elements being on the periphery of the rigid part of said ear and presenting a cam surface to the detent on the other part, whereby upon contact of said detent elements said resilient extension will yield to permit said part of the device directly pivoted thereto to be lifted by said cam surface and the detent on such lifted part to be passed over the detent element on the other part.

4. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a sheath therefor, a pivot element permanently connecting one end of one of said parts to one end of the other of said parts and around which said parts may be swung relatively to each other to open and close the device, and resilient means intermediate such connected ends of said parts, in engagement with both thereof, for holding the device in position against unintentional angular displacement thereof.

5. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a sheath therefor, a pivot element permanently connecting one end of one of said parts to one end of the other of said parts and around which said parts may be swung relatively to each other to open and close the device, and resilient means intermediate'such connected ends of said parts, in engagement with both thereof, and fixedly attached to one of said parts to swing therewith as a unit, for holding the device in open position against unintentional angular displacement thereof.

6. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a sheath therefor, a pivot element permanently connecting one end of one of said parts to one end of the other of said parts and around which said parts may be swung relatively to each other to open and close the device, and resilient means intermediate such connected ends of the parts, in engagement with both thereof, and fixedly attached to one of said parts by said pivot element, to swing therewith as a unit, for holding the device in open position against unintentional angular displacement thereof.

'7. A device of the character stated, comprising a toilet article and a sheath therefor, a pivot element permanently connecting one end of one of said parts to one end of the other of said parts and around which said parts may be swung relatively to each other to open and close the device, and resilient means intermediate such connected ends of said parts, in engagement with both thereof, for holding the device in open position against unintentional angular displacement thereof, said resilient means being seated in a pocket in one of said parts and secured thereto by said pivot element.

at the free ends holding the parts in position m when the free ends contact each other.

PAUL S. HAUTON. 

